5 Things You Didn't Know: The UFC

4- Its owners have agreed to settle disputes with jujitsu

In one of entertainment’s most lucrative business deals, casino billionaire brothers Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta bought the floundering UFC for $2 million in 2001. Three years later, they were $34 million in the red, despite having the sport sanctioned by athletic commissions in Nevada and New Jersey. Then, they got it onto Spike TV by offering to pay for the production of a reality show, Ultimate Fighter, and their financial numbers began to change. Near the end of 2006, Business 2.0 claimed the UFC brand to be worth in excess of $700 million, thanks in large part to pay-per-view events. In 2006, the UFC’s 10 PPV events are believed to have generated over $200 million in retail revenue.

Currently, in the spirit of the UFC, the ownership contract features a unique dispute resolution clause: In the case of a deadlock between members of Zuffa, LLC., the Fertitta brothers, “... shall engage in a sport jujitsu match" of three five-minute rounds, which would be referred by the current UFC president (and 10% owner of Zuffa) Dana White.

5- Its president lured back a fighter by fighting him

Fittingly, the UFC’s top brass could probably take on the top brass at any organization in the world and come out on top. Not only are the Fertitto brothers themselves trained in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but Lorenzo has also sparred with a number of UFC fighters, and the brothers’ trainer is former kickboxing instructor, boxer and UFC President Dana White. As a testament to White’s toughness and commitment to the organization, when Tito Ortiz — one of the UFC’s star fighters — left the organization, White managed to lure him back to the UFC — by agreeing to go three rounds against him.